Question about time and stress management

Scrubby · Jun 29, 2009

It is important for a nurse to be able to manage their time effectively and deal with stressful situations. You shouldn't be taking an hour to do something that would take most people 15 minutes. And you should be able to manage emergencies etc without running out of the place in tears. This comes with experience and it's an ideal objective to work toward.

However, it is also fairly obvious to me that time and stress management is abused by managers and admin. So we are made to feel that WE are at fault when we cannot do our tasks on time and cope with unreasonable workloads, rather than management not providing adequate staffing to provide quality patient care.

RNperdiem, RN · Jun 29, 2009

I think it is a bit of both.

Some people come to nursing with good sense of time and organization, and develop the specific time management skills nursing requires.

Nursing requires getting back on your task after multiple interruptions, picking up where you left off, and the judgement to know when to reshuffle your list of priorities. The judgement part is learned.

Stress management is the same way. Some people are simply more resilient. Stress management also comes with age and experience.

chicookie, BSN, RN · Jun 29, 2009

It is something you learn. Before nursing I never managed my time correctly and I had nothing in the department of stress control. I had no stress!

But once I went to NS school it took a while but I learned how to do these things and am now improving on those areas.

Its something that takes time to learn and perfect.

John Coxon · Jul 14, 2009

Essentially these are two seperate sets of competencies, though if you fail to manage time/tasks you will likely increase your level of stress.

It is worth remembering you cannot control time. You have only 24 hours in day, no more, no less. You have to work with the time you have. This suggests the key aspect is managing tasks. Taking on tasks that you can do within the time available. Many people fail in their ability to say NO. They just keep on accepting tasks without considering either their ability to complete the task or the time it will require. If you want to say NO, try saying "I would like to do this for you however I am backed up, could you please give it to someone else?" It's a NO without having to be abrupt. Each of us becomes involved in tasks which are not essential to our core service delivery. These are the things we like doing but dont necessarily need to be doing. If you are short of time, these need to be dropped off the to do list. It is important to maintain a 'to do' list. One of the easiest tools for this is found in Outlook. Learn how to use this. As soon as you commit to a task with an extended completion date, enter it into Outlook. Generate a start and finish date. Break it down into key task and allocate each of them a start/stop date. Outlook will send you reminders. If a task comes due, make a decision. Do you actually need to do it now or can it be rescheduled?

Stress management requires different strategies. Firstly create space for yourself to reflect and think. Avoid being reactive to events. Do you take scheduled breaks? If so, try to get some fresh air. Water rather than caffine. Fresh food rather than fast food. Identify those events that cause you stress. Identify the trigger points and prepare coping strategies in advance. Learn how to say NO. Avoid becoming involved in the workplace rumour mill. Base all your decisions on the facts.

Regards

John Coxon

John Coxon & Associates provide 1-1 coaching by email, sms and skype. Payment via Paypal. Go to www.johncoxon.com.au/personal_coaching.html

Aniroc · Nov 4, 2009

I just wrote a reply on a topic related to TM and wether it could be learned or not. And like other posters, I agree that it is a "skill" which can be learned. Like all the other skills and knowledge we gained during nursing school, we add this to our repitoire. I suggest turning the nursing process on your TM issue and develop a CP to help learn and ingrain this essential nursing skill.

sistasoul · Nov 29, 2009

Essentially these are two seperate sets of competencies, though if you fail to manage time/tasks you will likely increase your level of stress.
It is worth remembering you cannot control time. You have only 24 hours in day, no more, no less. You have to work with the time you have. This suggests the key aspect is managing tasks. Taking on tasks that you can do within the time available. Many people fail in their ability to say NO. They just keep on accepting tasks without considering either their ability to complete the task or the time it will require. If you want to say NO, try saying "I would like to do this for you however I am backed up, could you please give it to someone else?" It's a NO without having to be abrupt. Each of us becomes involved in tasks which are not essential to our core service delivery. These are the things we like doing but dont necessarily need to be doing. If you are short of time, these need to be dropped off the to do list. It is important to maintain a 'to do' list. One of the easiest tools for this is found in Outlook. Learn how to use this. As soon as you commit to a task with an extended completion date, enter it into Outlook. Generate a start and finish date. Break it down into key task and allocate each of them a start/stop date. Outlook will send you reminders. If a task comes due, make a decision. Do you actually need to do it now or can it be rescheduled?
Stress management requires different strategies. Firstly create space for yourself to reflect and think. Avoid being reactive to events. Do you take scheduled breaks? If so, try to get some fresh air. Water rather than caffine. Fresh food rather than fast food. Identify those events that cause you stress. Identify the trigger points and prepare coping strategies in advance. Learn how to say NO. Avoid becoming involved in the workplace rumour mill. Base all your decisions on the facts.
Regards
John Coxon
John Coxon & Associates provide 1-1 coaching by email, sms and skype. Payment via Paypal. Go to www.johncoxon.com.au/personal_coaching.html

This advice is good for life in general but not nursing. There is no time to reflect and think. There is no time to "reschedule"things. The Dr's orders have got to be carried out. Can I really reschedule giving someone their meds or their assessment? I think I will reschedule those 2 items till tomorrow. Maybe a dressing change can be rescheduled to the next shift but it is really not a good idea. If the insicion or wound is infected it is better to catch it sooner rather than later. I wish someone could tell me what some of the things I could reschedule as a floor nurse are.

DLS_PMHNP, MSN, RN, NP · Nov 29, 2009

However, it is also fairly obvious to me that time and stress management is abused by managers and admin. So we are made to feel that WE are at fault when we cannot do our tasks on time and cope with unreasonable workloads, rather than management not providing adequate staffing to provide quality patient care.

So true.. And unfortunately, the more we go 'above and beyond' with our unreasonable workloads, the more that is expected. Sigh... I hate administrative nonsense.